Former vice president David Mabuza. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
Tformer vice president, David Mabuza, has lashed out at the Democratic Alliance (DA) leader John Steenhuisen through new claims that the latter is a high-level politician behind corruption involving Eskom.
This is the second statement made by Mabuza. A previous statement asking Steenhuisen to report the allegations to the police was reported by Sunday Times.
In the statement sent to Mail & Guardians on Sunday, Mabuza denied allegations that he was corrupt, saying Steenhuisens accusations were baseless and exposed him as
“political fraudsters desperate for attention”.
“He cowardly and opportunistically chose to make these accusations using a protected parliamentary platform to hide from the legal censors, because he knows very well that he is lying and lying. For him to use dishonest tactics, just to score cheap political points is humiliating and damaging the status of the member honorable parliament.
“Now, Mr. Steenhuisen should know that every time he and his friends have tried to use my name to achieve political goals, I have repeatedly and emphatically asked them to use all the legal means at their disposal to prove or disprove the lack of evidence. statement.”
Mabuza said the country has a strong criminal justice system to fight crime and corruption when it is detected and the perpetrators are prosecuted.
He said Steenhuisen had failed to do so and even smeared his name in anticipation that something would remain.
“Steenhuisen is actively playing a leading role in undermining the faith of law-abiding South Africans in the effectiveness of our laws and the legitimacy of state institutions by continuing to engage in grandstanding, including the abuse of parliamentary privilege without providing evidence to law enforcement agencies,” Mabusa said in the statement.
During a parliamentary hearing on March 16, Steenhuisen mentioned a Everyday Maverick report on Eskom, which revealed that high-level ANC politicians control all government business related to the province.
It has been reported that leading politicians are linked to four cartels operating in Mpumalanga.
“We all know who this person is. It is Mr DD Mabuza and we all know his connections in the ANC,” Steenhuisen told parliament.
In a sharp response, Mabuza said DA leaders have the opportunity to bring what they know and gather to the state capture commission for scrutiny and to have their claims tested.
The former vice president said that after resigning from parliament, he is still a patriot who strives for the realization of the constitution.
“Steenhuisen and those who share his views are encouraged to use all available legal instruments to fight corruption and also to prevent actions that could undermine public confidence in the country and its ability to enforce justice.”
Last month, several publications reported that Eskom’s former chief executive, Andre De Ruyter, had hired a private investigator to track down the cartel that had brought the power utility to its knees. These investigators are paid by private funds.
He ran a vast network, with several cabinet members allegedly also involved in and driving the syndicate.
In an interview with eNCA, De Ruyter declined to name the senior ANC politicians involved in and leading the syndicate.
He said he had “raised his concerns” to senior government ministers about what he saw as an attempt to “water the government down” on more than $8.5 billion in climate change funding.
“The response was basically, ‘You know, you have to be pragmatic, you have to, in order to achieve the greater good, you have to let some people eat a little bit’,” De Ruyter said.
He said he had pointed to a cabinet minister – since revealed to be Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan – whose syndicate at Eskom was linked to cabinet ministers and high-level politicians. De Ruyter did not name the people involved, due to libel concerns.